Australia: Tasmania Premier Lara Giddings Considers Same-Sex Marriage

The Age reports:

TASMANIA may become the first Australian state to legalise gay marriage - possibly even as early as this year - after Premier Lara Giddings yesterday vowed her government would pursue the reform.In a development that could shift the debate beyond the anticipated defeat of proposed federal gay marriage laws in coming months, the Tasmanian legislation would also allow couples from outside the state to marry there - in a bid to boost the local economy.The move appeared to catch the federal government and other states by surprise, with Victoria refusing to say if it would recognise same-sex marriages from Tasmania - and restating its view that marriage laws were a federal matter.But constitutional law expert Professor George Williams last night republished advice he wrote, arguing that marriage falls under the ”concurrent” or shared powers of Section 51 of the constitution - leaving the way open for states to legislate on gay marriage.

”The only limitation is that, where federal and state laws conflict, the Commonwealth law takes precedence. My view is that a state same-sex marriage law would not be inconsistent with the federal Marriage Act after it was narrowed in 2004 to make sure it dealt only with heterosexual marriage. However, this could only be determined by the High Court,” he wrote.Ms Giddings said she had obtained legal advice from the solicitor-general that there was no obstacle to stop legislation.”Labor has a proud history of tackling discrimination and introducing important social reform,” she said. ”I expect the rest of the country will be watching closely as we work through this process.”Tasmanian Labor senator Helen Polley declared it ”a bridge too far” while gay rights campaigner Rodney Croome was overjoyed that the last Australian state to decriminalise homosexuality might become the first to allow gay marriage.”The message that Lara Giddings has sent the rest of the world today is that Tasmania has a heart, a heart that beats with courage and a heart that beats with love,” he said.The Tasmanian bill looks to have clear passage in the lower house with Labor and Greens support, but the picture is less clear in the upper house, where 13 of the 15 MPs are independents.A federal private member’s bill on gay marriage is widely expected to fail in the Parliament when put to a vote later this year. Federal Labor changed its platform last December to support gay marriage, but Labor MPs who oppose it - including Prime Minister Julia Gillard - have been granted a conscience vote. Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has said the Coalition will vote against the legislation, with no conscience vote.With the federal bill expected to fail, Ms Giddings yesterday said ”the time has come to act decisively on this issue”.She said 11 countries - Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, South Africa and Sweden - recognise same-sex marriage, as did states in Mexico and the US.”There will always be excuses, arguments and questions of timing when moving on difficult and controversial issues,” she said.”But just as we have responded to other forms of discrimination throughout history, there comes a time when no amount of excuses should stand in the way of doing what is right.”Federal Attorney-General Nicola Roxon refused to comment directly on the plan, while the Victorian government said it ”remains of the view that issues concerning marriage are a matter for the Commonwealth”. Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu supports civil unions, but not gay marriage.Australian Christian Lobby chief Jim Wallace said legal opinion was contested, and he couldn’t imagine the High Court would allow states to prevail on gay marriage.

Vietnam: Government Considers Allowing Gay Marriage

The Seattle Times reports:

Dinh Thi Hong Loan grasps her girlfriend’s hand, and the two gaze into each other’s love-struck eyes. Smiling, they talk about their upcoming wedding — how they’ll exchange rings and toast the beginning of their lives together.
The lesbians’ marriage ceremony in the Vietnamese capital won’t be officially recognized, but that could soon change. Vietnam’s Communist government is now considering whether to allow same-sex couples to marry or legally register and receive rights — positioning the country to be the first in Asia to do so.
“Our love for each other is real and nothing changes regardless of whether the law is passed or not,” said Loan, 31. “But when it is passed, we will definitely go get registered. I can’t wait!”
Even longtime gay-rights activists are stunned by the Justice Ministry’s proposal to include same-sex couples in its overhaul of the country’s marriage law. No one knows what form it will take or whether it will survive long enough to be debated before the National Assembly next year, but supporters say the fact that it’s even being considered is a victory in a region where simply being gay can result in jail sentences or whippings with a rattan cane.
“I think everyone is surprised,” said Vien Tanjung, an Indonesian gay-rights activist. “Even if it’s not successful, it’s already making history. For me personally, I think it’s going to go through.”
Vietnam seems an unlikely champion of gay-rights issues. It is routinely lambasted by the international community over its dismal human-rights record, often locking up political dissidents who call for democracy or religious freedom. Up until just a few years ago, homosexuality was labeled as a “social evil” alongside drug addiction and prostitution.
And Vietnam’s gay community itself was once so underground that few groups or meeting places existed. It was taboo to even talk about the issue.
But over the past five years, that’s slowly started to change. Vietnam’s state-run media, unable to write about politically sensitive topics or openly criticize the one-party government, have embraced the chance to explore gay issues. They have run lengthy newspaper stories and television broadcasts, including one live special that won a top award.
Video of Vietnam’s first publicized gay wedding went viral online in 2010, and a few other ceremonies followed, capturing widespread public attention. The Justice Ministry now says a legal framework is necessary because the courts do not know how to handle disputes between same-sex couples living together. The new law could provide rights such as owning property, inheriting assets and adopting children.
“I think, as far as human rights are concerned, it’s time for us to look at the reality,” Justice Minister Ha Hung Cuong said Tuesday in an online chat broadcast on national TV and radio. “The number of homosexuals has mounted to hundreds of thousands. It’s not a small figure. They live together without registering marriage. They may own property. We, of course, have to handle these issues legally.”
Globally, 11 countries have legalized same-sex marriage since the Netherlands became the first to do so in 2001. Only a few U.S. states allow it, but President Obama provided hope for many couples worldwide after announcing his support earlier this year.
The issue has remained largely off the table across Asia. In Thailand, many tourists see a vibrant gay, lesbian and transgender community, but it exists largely as part of the country’s lucrative entertainment industry, separated from politics and conservative Thai society.
Muslim-dominated nations such as Indonesia have strict laws against homosexuality. Sodomy can result in up to 20 years in jail and caning in Malaysia. But that hasn’t stopped some from continuing to fight for more rights and visibility.
In Singapore, more than 15,000 people — double last year’s turnout — recently held up pink lights in a park at night to support acceptance of the community in a modern city-state where gay sex remains illegal, even though the law is not enforced.
In Taiwan, a 2003 bill to recognize same-sex marriage failed to receive enough support to make it law, though a lesbian couple is expected to tie the knot in August at a Buddhist monastery.
Vietnam will also hold its first public gay-pride parade Aug. 5 in Hanoi. The country is socially conservative, but the government restricts the kind of politicized religious movements that typically push back against same-sex marriage in other countries. Gay-pride events also seem to pose little threat to the Communist Party’s dominance.
The same-sex marriage proposal still has several hurdles before it could become law. The Justice Ministry will consider opinions from the public along with government agencies before submitting its draft proposal to the National Assembly next May on whether to recommend same-sex marriage or some other type of legal recognition with rights. Then, it must be approved by a majority of parliament.
“Some people told me if Vietnam could legalize it, it would be very good example for other counties to follow,” said Le Quang Binh, head of the nonprofit Institute for Studies of Society, Economy and Environment, which is consulting on the marriage law. “People think that talking about it is a big step forward already … I hope it will lead to more openness or tolerance for gays and lesbians in Vietnam.”
As for Vietnamese partners Loan and Nguyen Thi Chi, who share a one-room apartment down a narrow alley in Hanoi, they say their love and commitment is real, regardless of whether a law exists to recognize them when they marry next month. But they hope the new proposal will ease stigma that lingers around same-sex couples.
Chi, 20, knows the pain of discrimination all too well. She recently dropped out of college after being publicly outed by a note taped to one of her classroom doors saying she was “diseased.” She was harassed and bullied for a year and a half on campus until finally deciding she’d had enough.
“Things must change,” she said. “Even though it was not a nice experience, more and more people are interested in knowing about the community. And the more people that know about it, the more people will have a different view on it.”

Argentina: President Cristina Kirchner Delivers New ID Cards To Transgender Individuals, Celebrates Decree Improving Adoption Rights 

Via Blabbeando:

“Today is a day of tremendous reparation. Today we do not shout for liberation but instead we shout for equality, which is just as important as freedom. I do not want to use a word that bothers me greatly: Tolerance. No. I do not believe in ‘tolerance’. To tolerate is to say I’ll allow you to be because I have no other choice. I want to talk about equality and I want to talk about all of you who will now have the same rights I have enjoyed from the moment I was born and the rights that so many millions of Argentinians have enjoyed from the moment they were born. This is the society we want.” says President Kirchner at an event marking the new right of transgender citizens to officially change their gender on official documents without proving they’d undergone surgery.

Blabbeando’s Andrés Duque notes the following details of the event, for those who don’t speak Spanish:

If you see lots of children in the room it’s because the Argentinean president also signed a presidential decree yesterday which put an end to a legal loophole that kept same-sex parents who began raising children before the 2010 marriage equality law passed from registering as co-parents of those children.  If I understand correctly, the decree gives same-sex parents that weren’t covered by the marriage equality law a full year to legally register their children as their own.
During her speech and before an image of Eva Perón, the president seemed to tear up a couple of times as she repeatedly invoked her husband Nestor Kirchner’s name as having been key in securing passage of the marriage equality law.  Her husband, a former Argentinean president himself, died in October of 2010.
“Today is a day of tremendous reparation,” the president said at the start of her speech, “today we do not shout for liberation but instead we shout for equality, which is just as important as freedom.”
Referring to Kalym Adrian, who was sitting in the front row holding the flag of the Argentinean LGBT Federation (FALGBT), the president then stated that Mr. Adrian had known he was a man as early as when he was four years of age and said that it was only now at 42 years of age that he was finally being recognized for who he was. “He has waited all his life!” someone shouted from the audience which the president acknowledged by repeating “All his life”.
Noting that the average age at which transgender individuals die in Argentina is 32, the president argued that part of it was due to the stress of being repressed and ignored and being denied legal rights. She said she hoped this law would change all that.

She later added “There is nothing new under the sun and let’s see if we all can agree on that.  All these issues we are acknowledging today in a legal way are nothing new. They stem from the history of humanity and it’s time for us to accept that reality is not how we’d like to be if I think in a certain way or someone else wants it to be but that reality is what it is.”
The President then alluded to the days of the dictatorship when children were taken away from families and the Mothers of the Plaza began their silent protests to get their children back and championed a history of peaceful protests in Argentina in demand of human rights.  She compared it to the history of non-violent demonstrations by the Argentinian LGBT community and began thanking the LGBT activists and organizations present in the room until Alex Freyreshouted out “And those who are missing as well!”
Alex and José Maria Di Bello, who became the first same-sex couple to marry in all of Latin America when a court in Tierra del Fuego granted them a license in December of 2009, were sitting in the audience wearing their trademark red-ribbon sashes in memory of all those lost to HIV and AIDS.
The president took note and recognized that the fight for human rights sometimes left people feeling worn out but said that she was grateful for the altruistic efforts by some to not only fight for their rights but also the rights of others.
“It’s better to have lived a worn out life than to always live like a flower or a butterfly without having achieved a thing,” she said.
She finally closed by apologizing to people like Mr. Adrian for having had to wait for almost forty years to finally be recognized.

In the room, along with Alex and José, Kalym and members of the FALGBT were also Marcela Romero, Coordinator of the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Trans People (RED LACTRANS), Alejandro Iglesias, who revolutionized how people in Argentine felt about transgender individuals through his participation in the hugely popular Argentinean edition of “Big Brother”, members of the Argentinean Association of Travesti, Transsexual and Transgender Individuals (ATTTA), Husbands César Cigliutti and Marcelo Suntheim who lead Comunidad Homosexual Argentina (CHA) who laid some of the groundwork for the gender identity law in the during the last decade, Diana Sacayan who leads the Anti-discrimination Movement for Liberation (MAL) and who was a recipient of one of the ID’s handed out by the president, Maria Rachid, Esteban Paulón, María José Lubertino and so many other individuals who have played such integral parts in getting these laws passed.

So, Argentina is now the most progressive country in the world on LGBT Rights overall. Not only legalized same-sex marriage in 2010, but now they’ve passed a law that allows transgender people to change their legal documents without to having to prove they’ve undergone sex-change surgery, but also signed a law that gives more rights to same-sex couples regarding fully adopting children as co-parents, for those who are not the biological parents.

Viva Argentina! 

Australia: Senate Committee Backs Marriage Equality In ‘Watershed’ Report

Pink News UK reports: 

A cross-party senate committee in Australia has published recommendations for a free vote on marriage equality legislation in the country’s federal parliament and called on senators to support the move.

The legal and constitutional affairs legislation committee in the Senate said today had received 46,000 pro-marriage equality submissions, nearly 60% of all submissions received. A similar report in the House of Representatives last week made no recommendations.

In its report, the committee said it was “overwhelmingly apparent” from submissions that gay couples “feel that the current definition of marriage in the Marriage Act discriminates against them because they are denied the fundamental social, cultural, psychological, administrative and legal benefits that marriage can provide”.

It went on: “As a result, and on balance, the committee strongly supports legislation to provide for marriage equality in Australia, on the basis that it will remove discrimination in this important area for same-sex couples.

“In saying this, the committee acknowledges the significance of the institution of marriage and the place that it holds in Australian society. The committee considers that allowing all couples access to marriage – regardless of their sex, sexual orientation or gender identity – will only strengthen the institution of marriage, and increase its value and importance.”

The report recommends 4-2 that a private member’s bill, the Marriage Equality Amendment Bill 2010, be passed into law with a clause expressly protecting religious ministers’ existing right to refuse to solemnise marriages as they choose.

It was introduced into the Senate by Australian Green Senator Sarah Hanson-Young in 2010 and referred to the committee earlier this year. Senator Hanson-Young said it was a “historical day”.

Alex Greenwich, National Convener for Australian Marriage Equality said: “This is a watershed moment in the marriage equality debate because Coalition, Labor and Greens members of the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee have joined forces to help progress a reform a majority of Australians want.”

One voting Coalition senator and one participating Coalition senator, both from the Liberal Party, endorsed the conscience vote recommendation despite their leader, Tony Abbott, indicating he will whip his MPs to oppose marriage equality.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard has indicated she will allow Labor ministers a free vote, but without support from the Coalition, the bill will not pass.

Mr Greenwich said: “This report has given voice to the very powerful conservative case for same-sex marriage, and has also called on Mr Abbott to allow members of the Coalition the opportunity to vote for reform and express their support for marriage equality as conservatives.”

Professor the Rev Gary Bouma from Clergy for Marriage Equality, lobbying this week at Parliament, said : “We seek marriage equality to promote the ideal of committed, monogamous relationships, particularly among young people, gay or straight, as good for them, for society and for the family.”

TEXAS: State Democrats Add Marriage Equality To Platform

The Dallas Voice reports: 

A marriage equality plank was added to the Texas Democratic Party’s platform during this weekend’s state convention in Houston. QSanAntonio has the full text of the marriage equality plank:

• “Texas Democrats join President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden in calling for and affirming equal rights including marriage equality for all Americans. We, along with our President and Vice President, recognize that same sex marriages should be valid and legal in America.
• “Texas Democrats support President Obama and the United States Justice Department in recognizing that the Federal Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional and in refusing to defend DOMA in any Federal Court proceeding. We call for the total repeal of DOMA.
• “Eight states and the District of Columbia have now recognized marriage equality and have legalized same sex marriages.
• “Texas Democrats support the full inclusion of all families in the life of our state, with equal respect, responsibility, and protection under law, including the freedom to marry. Government has no business putting barriers in the path of people seeking to care for their family members, particularly in challenging economic times. We support the repeal of the Federal Defense of Marriage Act, the Texas Defense of Marriage Act and the Texas Constitutional Marriage Amendment and oppose other attempts to deny the freedom to marry to loving same sex couples.”

Erin Moore of Dallas [pictured], outgoing vice president of the Texas Stonewall Democratic Caucus, reportedly was instrumental in getting the marriage equality plank added as a member of the platform committee. The party also reported added a plank to the platform on adoption which states, “We support adoption of children by loving, qualified parents regardless of marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or expression, and the rights of families created by those adoptions.”

Netherlands: Health Minister Edith Schippers Stops Gay “Cure” Therapy Health Insurance 

Pink News UK reports:

Gay ‘cure’ therapy will no longer be available in the basic health insurance package in the Netherlands, Dutch Health Minister Edith Schippers announced today.
In a letter to parliament, Schippers said homosexuals who suffer psychologically because of their sexual orientation should be offered pastoral guidance rather than medical treatment, since homosexuality is not a psychiatric disorder.
The announcement will affect groups such as Christian-inspired mental health organisation ‘Different’, which claims to provide therapy for homosexuals to help ‘repress their sinful urges’.
Insurance companies could not refuse to pay for treatment as these groups were officially recognised as providers of psychological help, further fuelling right-wing groups who saw this state backing as proof that homosexuality could be cured or changed.
Schippers said: “There’s no question of a psychiatric diagnosis [for homosexuals], no psychiatric treatment, and therefore there should be no insured care.”
‘Different’ will still be entitled to provide pastoral counselling for anyone who is unhappy with their homosexual feelings, but this is to be paid for by the individual.

Canada: Bill Allows For “Gay & Straight Alliances” In Ontario 

Queerty reports:

With a growing awareness of bullying and its effects on vulnerable schoolkids, the provincial government in Ontario is pushing legislation that would require every school, including Catholic institutions, to allow LGBT students and allies to organize school-approved groups—and to allow them to be called Gay-Straight Alliances.
Previously, the Accepting Schools Act would have allowed principals to veto the name of any club.

• In a bid to curb bullying with more clout for schools to expel students who pick on others, the bill requires school boards to support student groups for “people of all sexual orientations and gender identities, including organizations with the name gay-straight alliance or another name.”
• That language gave schools an escape clause when it came to naming clubs, which can be formed for any common interest or need for mutual support that students identify.
• The Progressive Conservatives and some parents and religious leaders have urged the government to remove any reference to gays, lesbians or transgendered students in the bill, saying the mention infers a special status not available to other children who might be victims of bullying for other reasons.
• The Ontario Catholic School Trustees’ Association has pushed Premier Dalton McGuinty — a Catholic whose wife, Terri, teaches in the Catholic system — to have any new student clubs aimed at preventing bullying to be called “Respecting Differences” clubs.
• In a 12-page missive on the issue last winter, the trustee group did not once mention the word “gay.”

Conservatives might think they can pretend teens don’t have any sexuality, but Broten made the point that ignoring the fact that LGBT kids are singled out for harassment and violence is irresponsible. “If we can’t name it, we can’t address it,” she said. “And we must address it.” Broten hopes to pass the amended  anti-bullying bill before the legislative session ends for the summer on June 7.
Douglas Elliott of the Ontario Gay-Straight Alliance Coalition  voiced his support for the new amendment to the bill—and his displeasure at critics. “If the Conservatives continue to oppose this,” he said, “they’re going to end up on the wrong side of this political question.”

NFL Rookies & Veterans Weigh In On Gay Players

The Advocate reports: 

Several current and retired NFL players say that they and their teammates are ready to welcome a gay player on their team.

Rookies Robert Griffin III, Trent Richardson, and Coby Fleener all agreed that it was time for the NFL to be more supportive of gay players.

Richarson, a two-time national champion for the University of Alabama, in a state that overwhelmingly passed a gay marriage ban in 2006, said he doesn’t care whether a teammate if be gay, and added that he has gay friends.

“I never pay attention to it,” Richardson said to Outsports.com last week at the NFLPA Rookie Premiere. “They do what they do. I don’t have a problem with them. As long as they’re playing good football and contributing to the team, I don’t have nothing to do with that. It is what it is. I don’t have any problem with any sexuality or whatever they’ve got going on. That’s them. That’s what they want to do. That’s their life.”

Retired player Jevon Kearse agreed. “In the game of football, it’s like a war out there,” he said. “Once you get out on the field, all that stuff is to the side. You’re on my side. I played in the NFL for 11 years, I’m sure there were at least one or two guys along the line that were gay.”

Meanwhile former Green Bay Packer Ahman Green also told Outsports that it would be difficult for a gay player to come out, but he shared that he has a gay brother and lesbian sister.

“In our sport, to be honest, I think it would be hard for any guy to come out while he’s playing,” he said. “And that’s not a happy thing to say. The gay community is just like everybody else, but they’re treated differently. It’s a double standard. If a guy was gay, he wouldn’t come out while he was playing. He knows the possibility of the scruitiny he might face from the locker room, which would be unfair. I am very open-minded. It is what it is. People are born that way. You can’t control it. Just like you’re white, I’m black. But a lot of people don’t think my way. I wish they did, because then there wouldn’t be guys who wanted to stay hidden.”

RHODE ISLAND: Government To Recognize Gay Marriages

Gov. Lincoln Chafee has ordered all State agencies to officially recognize same-sex marriages legally performed in other jurisdictions, States or Countries. In Rhode Island, since last year, civil unions are legal. (Via The Washington Post):

The executive order is expected to have many real-world implications. Same-sex spouses of state employees and anyone covered by an insurance company regulated in Rhode Island will be entitled to health and life insurance benefits, gay rights advocates say. Both partners in a same-sex couple will be able to list their names as parents on a child’s birth certificate, and same-sex couples will be entitled to sales tax exemptions on the transfer of property including vehicles. One couple who attended the signing ceremony — married in neighboring Massachusetts — described their disappointment of not being able to list both their names on their son’s birth certificate. “For our next child, we won’t have to go through the same kind of turmoil,” Martha Holt Castle said.

USA: President Obama Endorses Marriage Equality

United Kingdom: “Marriage Equality” Could Make Scotland A Progressive Beacon, Ahead Of England, Wales & Northern Ireland 

Pink News UK reports: 

With equal marriage laws absent from the Westminster government’s legislative agenda for the coming year, Scottish campaigners say Holyrood is in a position to become a ‘beacon’ of equality by introducing the laws first.

A public consultation took place in Scotland towards the end of 2011, with the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP) government having said it was minded towards introducing equality. The results of the consultation have been pushed back until June.

In February, the leaders of all of Scotland’s opposition parties: Labour, Conservative, Liberal Democrats and Greens signed a pledge to vote for gay couples being allowed to marry when the issue comes before the Scottish Parliament.

Ruth Davidson, the leader of the Scottish Conservative Party is openly lesbian while Patrick Harvie, the leader of the Scottish Green Party is openly bisexual.

In line with the government’s previous statements but disappointing to marriage advocates hoping for legislation to come sooner, the Queen’s Speech at Westminster today did not include marriage equality on the agenda for England and Wales this year.

The government has pledged to introduce the legislation before 2015 and a public consultation is ongoing.

Tom French, Policy Coordinator for the Equality Network, said the confirmation of the legislative agenda put Scotland in an ideal position to move ahead of the rest of the UK on equality between gay and straight couples in marriage.

He said: “The Scottish Government now has the perfect opportunity to prove that Scotland is capable of being the progressive beacon that our political leaders want it to be by leading the way on equal marriage rights.

“We know that a majority of the public back full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. Scotland has the powers it needs to make this happen. It’s now time for the Scottish Government to bring forward legislation and make equal marriage a reality.”

The Equality Network added that delaying legislation until after Scotland holds a referendum on independence from the rest of the UK, as had been suggested in some quarters, would be a “mistake”.

It said: “Delaying a decision on same-sex marriage would put the issue centre-stage during the referendum campaign, and would undermine any good will that the Scottish Government secured when they brought forward equal marriage proposals.”

France: Pro-Gay Socialist François Hollande Wins Presidency 

KANSAS: Ex-Klansman’s Gay Son, Eric Bishop, To Run For Office To Unseat Democrat With Anti-Gay Record

cjonline.com reports: 

Erich Bishop’s voice cracked as he began to tell a small crowd of gay-rights advocates gathered outside the Statehouse about his father Thursday.

Bishop gathered himself and offered what was clearly a difficult glimpse into his childhood.

“My father is a former member of the Ku Klux Klan,” he said. “To call my household as a child racist and homophobic would be an understatement. My father rightly faced opposition from people like you.”

Bishop was speaking at a rally against a bill that gay-rights advocates fear will sanction discrimination against them under the guise of religious freedom. He also was announcing that he plans to challenge one of the chief proponents of the bill, House Democratic Rep. Jan Pauls, of Hutchinson, in August’s primary election.

Bishop’s candidacy immediately gives Hutchinson one of the most intriguing Democratic primaries in an election cycle thus far dominated by hotly anticipated Republican races.

He is a 28-year-old openly gay man who spent much of his adult life working as a certified nursing assistant before earning a philosophy degree from The University of Kansas, where he graduated with high honors this past May.

Pauls is a lawyer who has been in the Legislature for 20 years and, while reliably Democratic on fiscal issues, has been as right-wing as any of her Republican colleagues on social issues. She has championed a bill this session to protect the state from Islamic law, or sharia, and the bill that was the focus of Thursday’s rally.

That bill, SB 142, seeks to prevent government from burdening an individual’s exercise of religion unless there is a compelling governmental interest. Proponents like Pauls and Rep. Lance Kinzer, R-Olathe, have said it is about ensuring religious freedom. Some have said it is necessary to protect against intrusions like mandatory contraception coverage recently proposed by the Obama administration.

But Thomas Witt, of the Kansas Equality Coalition, strongly disagreed, telling those at Thursday’s rally that the bill is about undermining local ordinances, such as one in Lawrence that prohibits landlords and businesses from discriminating based on sexual orientation.

Kinzer, speaking in favor of the bill on the House floor a month ago, used an anecdote about a New Mexico wedding photographer who was sued for refusing to snap pictures of a same-sex wedding.

Pauls, who didn’t immediately return a message seeking comment, has run afoul of the KEC on a number of occasions, including last year when she spoke against removing an anti-sodomy law from the state’s books.

Jon Powell, a leader of the coalition’s Hutchinson branch, voiced support for Bishop’s candidacy, saying he didn’t reveal that he was gay until he was in his 40s because he worked for a conservative company and feared reprisals.

“It’s time to start planning Jan Pauls’ retirement party,” he told the crowd. “It’s time for some progressive leadership in Kansas.”

Bishop said he told the crowd about his father’s involvement with the Klan in part because he wants people to know that being gay isn’t a choice — it is a state of being that spurred him to reject the Klan’s rhetoric.

“I’m grateful I am because I wouldn’t hold the values I do today if not for that,” he said.

PENNSYLVANIA: Gets First Out Gay Lawmaker  

Joe.My.God. reports: 

The Victory Fund writes us to announce that yesterday Pennsylvania elected its first-ever openly gay member of the state legislature.

• Brian Sims tonight has won a decisive Democratic primary in his Philadelphia district and will become Pennsylvania’s first openly gay state representative. Sims defeated a longtime incumbent to capture the Democratic nomination in the heavily Democratic District 182, and will face no Republican opponent this November. Sims, a former member of the Victory Campaign Board, is a distinguished policy attorney and civil rights advocate from Center City Philadelphia. The former Staff Counsel for Policy and Planning at the Philadelphia Bar Association, he recently stepped down as the President of the Board of Directors of Equality Pennsylvania.